With training camp and padded practices in full swing, many New York Giants players have begun to stand out. That’s good news considering the lack of a preseason and the team’s need for more depth.
Here are seven players that opened some eyes during the first week of padded practices:
QB Daniel Jones
The Giants are looking for Jones to take a leap forward this year and it seems like he just might. He’s added some muscle and appears to be in sync with the new offense.
On Tuesday, Giants’ in-house reporter Dan Salamone wrote the below about Jones’ day:
“The second-year quarterback was nearly flawless during 1-on-1 drills, which pitted a receiver against a defensive back. Jones went through two rotations until his first incompletion, throwing red zone touchdowns to Sterling Shepard, Golden Tate, Corey Coleman, Austin Mack, Binjimen Victor, and Alex Bachman. Later, during team drills, Jones showed his decision-making and athleticism when he tucked the ball with nothing open and ran for a touchdown,” Salamone wrote.
CB Darnay Holmes
The Giants’ fourth-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, Holmes has been a consistent mention in practice roundup articles. Head coach Joe Judge has expressed his thoughts, which were mainly positive.
“I think he’s doing a good job day by day,” Judge said. “We’ve seen a consistent improvement from him. Like every rookie, they have to get used to the pace and the adjustments within this level of football. But I don’t think Darnay is really backing off from any challenge. I’ve been pleased to see how he comes out every day and competes. I’ve been pleased to see his energy and enthusiasm on the field, and that competitive nature definitely shows up.”
WR Sterling Shepard
Shepard is angling to become the standout star in the Giants’ wide receiver room. Before he does that, he’s going to have to show some more durability.
The Giants already know he is reliable, now they want to see that carried out for 17 weeks during the season.
“Anyone involved in Judge’s practices describes them as ‘efficient.’ There is not a lot of wasted time, with the energy focused on maximizing each rep,” writes Salamone. “That is also a good word for Shepard’s practice [performance]. Right off the bat, Shepard set the tone for the 1-on-1 drills with a touchdown catch off the arm of Jones. Shepard looked confident in the new offense, a testament to the work he and the rest of the team accomplished during the virtual off-season.”
TE Evan Engram
Engram is coming off another season marred by injury. He was limited to just eight games in 2019 and ended the season on IR with a Lisfranc injury. The Giants will ask him to become more of a traditional tight end in their core offense but will also seek to use him as a weapon in the passing game to exploit his speed and athleticism.
“Everyone knows what Engram can do as a receiver – which he showed again tonight – but what jumped out about him in this practice was his physicality,” Salamone noted on Wednesday. “He was doing some dirty work, highlighted by a pancake block at one point to get the edge.”
OG Will Hernandez
Hernandez had his issues in 2019 after a stellar showing as a rookie the year before. He’s apparently back and ready to regain that form at left guard this year.
“The highlight of practice was the 1-on-1 drill between the offensive and defensive linemen,” Salomone wrote after Tuesday’s practice. “Each side notched their share of wins, but guard Will Hernandez stood out from the pack today.”
S Xavier McKinney
The Giants are hoping their second-round pick can secure a starting job alongside Jabrill Peppers in the secondary. He’s off to a good start. On Thursday, McKinney had his second eye-opening practice of the week.
“McKinney has shown this week why many considered him a steal in the second round,” noted Salamone. “Today, the rookie broke up two passes to kick off the day during 1-on-1 drills. It followed up a Tuesday outing – yesterday was not a full-speed practice – in which he had an interception.”
DB Julian Love
Love appeared to be the odd man out when the Giants drafted McKinney this spring but you’d never know it. He is determined to make his case to keep the starting safety job he finished the 2019 season at. He could become a valuable cog in the Giants’ secondary this season.
“Love notched the lone interception of practice, capitalizing on a pass that went through the receiver’s hands,” Salamone reported on Thursday. “As you may have heard (multiple times) by now, the Giants are cross-training all of their players at different positions, especially in the secondary. Love is a player who can be used a variety of ways in a defensive backfield looking for players to step up after Sam Beal opted out of the season and DeAndre Baker was placed on the Commissioner Exempt List.”
